While Shawn Michaels (complete with a VINTAGE WWF t-shirt) is running his mouth off about Hacksaw Jim Duggan outside the Manhattan Center hours before the show, Mr. Perfect stops by for a FIGHT that ends up with Shawn getting tossed onto Finkel’s Oldsmobile Achieva and doing some damage to the windshield. The WWF road agents pounce on the scene and attempt to separate the two. Good way to start the show off with a BOOM there.

Your hosts are Vince McMahon, Randy Savage, and Bobby Heenan.

Bam Bam Bigelow vs. Typhoon – King of the Ring Qualifying Match
Since neither man can knock the other down with shoulderblocks, they settle for trading slams. Somewhere around this point, there appears to be some blood on the top of Bigelow’s head. Only Heenan seems to notice. Back suplex by Bigelow causes Typhoon to need to bail. Bigelow then runs Typhoon down the apron into the ring post – TWICE. No blood though. Back in as Bigelow grabs a chinlock, the cameras are becoming increasingly bored as they fade to black apparently falling asleep on this match. Oh wait, no it’s just an ad break. When we return and the cameras are awake again, Typhoon mounts his comeback. Bigelow ends all that noise as he avoids a corner charge. Bigelow delivers a fireman’s carry drop and follows through with the FLYING HEADBUTT to officially enter the King of the Ring. (5:26) This felt WAY longer. ¾*

Yokozuna (w/Mr. Fuji) vs. P.J. Walker
Fresh from the Hart Dungeon, we’ve got a 19-year old Justin Credible in the ring here. This isn’t his first match on Raw. He took a beating at the hands of Lex Luger prior to WrestleMania. Our esteemed commentators discuss just what Yokozuna will do to Hulk Hogan at the King of the Ring when they meet for really the first time. Heenan believes Yoko is putting on even more weight to take on the Hulkster, who was actually slimming down at the time after the steroid trials. Legdrop, Buttalanche, and the BANZAI DROP ends poor P.J. at 2:12. Great reactions from the crowd for all three of Yoko’s signature moves.

Mr. Perfect vs. Iron Mike Sharpe
Clearly just giving our two all-star lumberjacks a workout here. Perfect gives the plump RAW girl his chewing gum – and she likes it. Early on, a dropkick by Perfect sends Sharpe to the floor. Back in, Perfect turnbuckle smashes Sharpe to the count of ten. Rolling neck snap leads to some trading of chops. Looked like Perfect ended that with a kick to the balls. Not sure though. While Perfect grabs a sleeper, Heenan changes the channel on his monitor to see what else is on. PERFECTPLEX puts away Sharpe at 4:40.

Mr. Hughes (w/Harvey Wippleman) vs. The Cannonball Kid
New week, same tights, and different name for the Kid. This is also the beginning of the short-lived Hughes and Wippleman relationship. You can probably imagine how this match goes. Hughes throws the Kid around before planting him with the ANGRY BLACKMAN SLAM for the win at 2:19.

WWF Intercontinental Champion Shawn Michaels vs. Hacksaw Jim Duggan – Lumberjack Match
Here are *your* flannelled lumberjacks: Terry Taylor, Mr. Hughes, Bob Backlund, Mr. Perfect, Tatanka, Typhoon, Bam Bam Bigelow, and Yokozuna (not enough flannel in the world to cover that guy). Apparently, Mr. Fuji is also a lumberjack. Duggan naturally tries to start a fight with Yokozuna. Much like last week, this crowd is REALLY pro-Duggan here. Shawn comes out walking on crutches because of what Perfect did to him at the beginning of the show. Perfect knows he’s not that hurt and throws Shawn into the ring to prove that he’s a liar. When HBK pops up to his feet to strike back at Perfect, Heenan claims that we’ve just seen a miracle. Awesome. Duggan is all over Shawn to start with RASSLIN moves like the atomic drop and a sloppy looking Oklahoma Stampede. Duggan rips off HBK’s 1990 (Warrior holds the strap on the shirt – that’s how I know!) WWF t-shirt and hits a suplex! What has gotten into Duggan here? And we’re back as Duggan starts up with the clotheslines and the typical Duggan offense. He throws Michaels out to the lumberjacks. The heels leave Shawn alone, but Perfect and Backlund carry him back to the ring. Commercials! When we return, Duggan is STILL in total control of this match. OLD GLORY knee drop misses and that looks to be the tide turner. Shawn takes his boot off and blasts Duggan in the face so hard, Duggan falls backwards into ref Bill Alfonso, so he didn’t see a thing. While the heel lumberjacks keep Duggan in the ring, Shawn hits the Bossman straddle. Duggan starts no-selling stuff, but HBK cuts him off as he runs into Shawn’s boot in the corner. Cover, 1-2-NO! Michaels slaps on a chinlock, which proves to be a big mistake as Duggan elbows out and mounts his comeback. Shawn flies off the middle rope into a slam for two. Duggan connects with the THREE-POINT STANCE and knocks Shawn clear out of the ring right in front of Taylor and Hughes, who just stand there. More commercials! After the break, Shawn misses a corner splash. Lucky for him, Bam Bam Bigelow distracts Duggan so HBK can nail him from behind. Shawn tosses Duggan out to Yokozuna, which is good for Shawn and BAD for Duggan. He gets a taste of the HUUUGE LEGDROP. So much for your face, Duggan. Yoko rolls him back in the ring. Just because he can, Shawn simply puts his foot on Duggan’s chest for 1-2-NO! Perfect is not down with such disrespect and runs in to knock Shawn away for the DQ. (13:07 shown) Afterwards, the lumberjacks begin brawling in the ring until Duggan cleans house by swinging his 2×4 all around. HOOOOOOOO! What is Iron Mike Sharpe doing out there? You weren’t a lumberjack in this match? Certainly a standout match in Duggan’s career since he doesn’t have that many of them outside of Mid-South. ***¼